Big Ben ready to clock in after missed season
BEN Simmons is motivated to make amends for missing the 2016 NBA season with the Philadelphia 76ers because of injury.
He was top overall pick in 2016, but sat out what should have been his rookie season with a fractured right foot.
The 21-year-old is out to prove that not only is he the best young player in the NBA, but that he’s the best player in the NBA – period.
A prodigy of Australian basketball, Simmons’ path to the NBA was not only unique, but trailblazing. In fact, his game can be described the same way.
The first question many asked during Simmons’ meteoric rise to the No.1 overall pick was: will his game translate to the big dance?
While his size, height and athleticism lend themselves to the ever-growing trend of “positionless’’ basketball, his perimeter shooting woes go directly against the increased emphasis on the three-point shot.
Simmons isn’t quite a big man at 2.08 metres tall and he’s not quite a guard. We’ve seen players like this before and often it doesn’t work out as planned.
NBA executives call them “tweeners’’ and while Simmons’ talent is undeniable, there was a fear that he may fall into that black hole. Thankfully, the “point forward’’ looks to be fitting right in, so far.
“You can see that he can play his game in the NBA, which is not always the case,” one Western Conference executive told foxsports.com.au.
During his high school and college career, Simmons was usually among the biggest and fastest players on the court.
So a lot of the time, he would use that size advantage in the post, or simply outrun an entire opposition for an easy basket in transition.
Now, Simmons was forced to play with more control, said David Patrick, Simmons’ godfather and assistant coach at LSU where he played college ball.
“I’m harder on him than most,” Patrick said.
“He is gradually getting more comfortable running the point and leading his team. I see him now slowing down, as he did in the last pre-season game, and picking times when to score and when to be a playmaker.
“What makes Benny special is he has a very high basketball IQ. He picks up things on the court quicker than most players, and his size and speed are unique for a kid his age.”
Simmons averaged 11.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.4 assists over five pre-season games for the 76ers. So far, the experiment to play Simmons at the point has been relatively successful but that may change as he begins to go up against the plethora of talented point guards in the NBA.
The learning curve was there for Simmons but it looks like his year off served him well, being able to observe NBA basketball from such a close distance before being introduced as the starting point guard.